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During the summer months, while most students were away, the city’s cultural scene was active, with new businesses and notable events. Here are three things students missed during their time off.

Parthenon Books Opens — June 25, 2022
Good news for Syracuse book lovers—Parthenon Books, the city’s first independent book store in thirty years, opened its doors, bringing with it coffee, community and of course, plenty of books.

“(This) bookstore is sort of a community hub where people that have different ideas and different thoughts can come together and either find something to spark their imagination or inspire them,” said Selena Giampa, Parthenon Books’ general manager.

Unlike larger booksellers, Parthenon shapes its inventory around its community and what they’re reading, Giampa said. Parthenon is committed to its locality, whether that’s promoting local authors, artists’ merchandise, or serving locally sourced coffee and baked goods.

Giampa is eager for students to visit the store, study and use books to navigate their early 20s.

“You are at an age where you’re exploring who you are and the kind of person that you want to be. Walk into a bookstore, and maybe walk to a section you normally wouldn’t,” Giampa said. “You might be surprised. Ask the bookseller for a recommendation— they might give you something that completely changes your life.”

Parthenon Books is located at 333 S Salina St, across the street from the Landmark Theatre. Its hours are 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. Sunday through Tuesday, and 10 a.m. – 8 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday.

Onondaga Community College Professor Wins “Jeopardy” — June 25, 2022
A new local celebrity was born when David Bzdak, a philosophy professor at Onondaga Community College, fulfilled a life-long dream and won “Jeopardy.” The Syracuse University doctoral alumnus beat Hoa Quach, an Illinois portfolio manager, and Iowa real estate attorney and returning champion Halley Ryherd to clinch the title.

Bzdak said he first tried to be a contestant in 2001, but it was former student Ashley O’Mara, who appeared on the show in 2018, who reignited his dream and motivated him to take the contestant test regularly again.

After a rigorous audition process and 16 months of waiting in a contestant pool, Bzdak got the call that he had been selected to fly to Los Angeles and finally become a contestant on “Jeopardy.”

“They said, ‘If you don’t hear from us in 16 months, you can start the whole process over again.’ I was like, it probably won’t happen this time. Oh well,” he said. “In early April, they called. They said, ‘can you come out here in three weeks and be on the show?’”

Bzdak said his whirlwind experience on Jeopardy — meeting other contestants, being on television and discussing his neuroscience dissertation with host Mayim Bialik — proved to him he can conquer nerves. He urged anyone interested in the show, even if they are anxious, to pursue it anyway for the great experience.

“For people that are tempted to try out, but are afraid that nerves will cause them to freeze up, the way I did… I would definitely say try out,” he said. “They’re pros, they know how to get you past your nerves.”
Bzdak will return to his philosophy teaching curriculum at OCC this fall, he said. He has immense gratitude for the opportunity to be a part of “Jeopardy” and to have fulfilled a childhood dream.

Cake Bar Expands Beyond Salt City Market — August 12, 2022

Fans of Vietnamese bubble tea, rejoice! Cake Bar, the popular stall in Salt City Market, opened a full café at 252 W Genesee Street. The menu features an array of Vietnamese patisserie and flavors, as well as an expansive menu of dessert-inspired drinks and teas, offering customers immersion into Vietnamese culture.

Ivory Huynh, the social media manager of Cake Bar, said this immersion and exposure was a key reason and business goal for the café’s expansion: to authentically represent Vietnamese cuisine and teach customers about the rich culture.

“We want to be a place where young people can come to hang out and eat dessert, drink milk tea… all of the desserts on our menu,” Huynh said. “We put a lot of effort in, and we are trying to promote Vietnamese culture in Syracuse.”

This new location is specifically geared toward the city’s student population, she said. Huynh said that Cake Bar founder, Duyen Nguyen, recognized an unmet need in the downtown scene — a café that is open late and doesn’t serve alcohol.

“Syracuse kind of shuts down at night. There’s no place to go except a bar,” she said. “Plus, you have to be 21… we provide a place for young people to hang out.”

Huynh described the atmosphere of the café as “trendy” — appealing to a younger eye — and hopes to incorporate original student artwork in the future. Cake Bar is also reminiscent of Vietnamese culture, representing a true marriage of different styles.

“We want to make the store with Vietnamese inspiration, anime, a giphy studio… if we have a chance, we will invite students from high school or SU to hang their paintings and switch them once a month… we want to bring their art to our audience,” Huynh said.
Both Cake Bar locations are open Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. – 9 p.m. Customers can order in-store or pre-order for special events.

Published on August 21, 2022 at 6:24 pm